The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings Order: This is how you see the Middle-earth saga chronologically correct

Similar to the “Star Wars” films, it is not easy to choose the “right” order for Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth saga. Netzwelt helps you plan your upcoming film marathon and also explains how the upcoming Amazon series fits into the Middle-earth timeline.

Lord of the Rings and Hobbit: Release Date Order

Anyone who starts with the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and then watches “The Hobbit” experiences Middle-earth in the same way that many film fans got to know the fantasy world in 2001. When the films are viewed in release date order, some of The Hobbit’s references to the Rings films seem more understandable, although many scenes in The Hobbit seem more trivial knowing how they will end.

The order by release date of “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” is highly recommended for a well-rounded movie experience, as the third hobbit ends where the first Lord of the Rings begins, thus creating a nice arc that is in chronological order would lose emotionality.

We clearly recommend the order of the first publication! If you decide to watch the extended versions of the films, you can choose almost 20 hours of entertainment be happy.

• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
• The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
• The Hobbit: Smaug’s Redeemer (2013)
• The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

Benefits of order by release date

• You experience Middle-earth the way fans experienced the Rings trilogy back then
• The beginning of LotR and the end of Hobbit complement each other well
• Allusions in The Hobbit will be better understood later

Disadvantages of order by release date

• Not chronological
• Scenes in The Hobbit lose weight as you know who survives
• Quality decreases after LOTR

Lord of the Rings and Hobbit: Chronological Order

The chronological order begins with the Hobbit trilogy and then continues with the Rings trilogy, set 60 years later. Fans will experience events in the order the characters experience them, and director Peter Jackson has also emphasized that he designed the Hobbit films to be watched first. But he couldn’t make the films without fan service, and so there are many references to LotR in The Hobbit that are difficult to understand without knowledge of the Rings trilogy.

• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
• The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
• The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Advantages of chronological order

• Events in chronological order
• Increased tension in Hobbit scenes picked up in LOTR
• Quality increase after Hobbit

Disadvantages of chronological order

• You start with a weaker trilogy
• Allusions to LotR are not understood

What about the Extended Editions of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit?

Anyone who has heard of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy can’t help but come across the legendary Extended Editions. These are longer versions of the films in which Jackson and his team incorporated scenes cut from the theatrical version. The Extended Editions of the Rings films are each around an hour longer. Less so with the hobbit.

Especially for fans of the books, the versions offer several scenes that take you to Middle-earth and show characters and locations that were omitted from the theatrical versions. But are the extended versions really better? Yes! In any case, the extended version of the film is worth watching.

With a running time of around three hours, the cinema versions are already a real time waster. In the case of the third parts, however, newcomers should also definitely look at the extended versions. “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” simply seems unfinished in the cinema version and the Extended Edition of “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” provides much more input for a round conclusion to the trilogy.

These LOTR orders are recommended by fans

In the following we will tell you what ideas fans of the films have for watching the film. However, be warned of spoilers!

The Ring Order: Follow the One Ring!

A crazy idea is to follow the One Ring. This order draws the main attention to the ring of power. You start with the intro of the first Lord of the Rings film and continue with the intro of the third part. Then you watch the Hobbit trilogy in chronological order and then the rest of The Lord of the Rings, also in chronological order.

This shifts the core of the films and the viewer’s attention to the whereabouts of the ring. You get a chronology of the ring bearers and their experiences with the legendary ring of power.

• Prologue to The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
• Prologue from “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”
• Hobbit trilogy in chronological order
• Rest of the Rings trilogy in chronological order

The “Two Kings Order”: Thorin and Aragorn in comparison

The “Two Kings Order” focuses on Aragorn and Thorin. It tells two different stories about royal succession, return to the throne and rulership. This order starts with the first two Hobbit movies. In it, viewers follow Thorin Oakenshield on his journey to reclaim his throne. Then watch the Rings trilogy in chronological order. This tells of Aragorn and his way to the throne. At first he didn’t want to claim his inheritance rights and in the end felt compelled to do so.

Finally, watch the third Hobbit film, “The Battle of the Five Armies”. In this one witnesses Thorin’s decline as king. You get a good contrast of demanding and demanding. While Aragorn is demanded to become king, Thorin demands to be king.

• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
• The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: Chronological
• The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

The Sauron Shuffle (or Sauron Mix)

It sounds like an elementary school mix tape: “The Sauron Mix”/”The Sauron Shuffle”! Of all the sequences, this is the least suitable for newcomers. Because in this one you alternately watch a part of one of the two trilogies. It doesn’t matter which film you start with.

• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring / The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
• The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers / The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King / The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

If you start with The Lord of the Rings you end with The Hobbit and vice versa. We recommend starting with LotR, as it will give a more rounded finish, as explained in release order.

In this order, you are watching two stories at the same time. This shifts the focus to Sauron. Because even if the villain in The Hobbit only seems like a secondary character, his presence is clearly reinforced by the Rings films and so some scenes in The Hobbit almost seem like a farce. For example, when Saruman emphasizes in the first Hobbit film that Sauron has been defeated and in the parallel film, the first Lord of the Rings film, you see how Saruman betrays Gandalf to Sauron!

Since the “Hobbit” trilogy uses the appendices of the Rings books, the Hobbit films provide a great deal of background information about the Rings films. This gives scenes in The Hobbit a completely different meaning in the “Sauron Shuffle”.

Where does Amazon Prime rank the Lord of the Rings series?

Amazon Prime’s Lord of the Rings series is set approximately 6000 years before the events of The Hobbit. The series is a prequel. The Amazon Prime project is expected to start in early 2021. The LotR series is set in the Second Age of Middle-earth, while Jackson’s film trilogies are both set in the Third Age.

The Lord of the Rings: Animated Cartoons and ’90s Soviet Adaptation

In addition to Peter Jackson’s adaptations and the upcoming Amazon series, there are other film adaptations of Tolkien’s works. There is a “Lord of the Rings” cartoon from 1978. The strip covers the plot of “The Fellowship of the Ring” and about two-thirds of “The Two Towers”.

Due to the lack of success, there is no direct sequel. In 1980, however, the cartoon “The Return of the King” was released, a film that tells the story of the third volume. “The Lord of the Rings” (animated) and “The Return of the King” do not follow each other seamlessly.

“The Hobbit” was also told as an animated film. The adaptation appeared in 1977. The first live-action version of “The Lord of the Rings” appeared on Soviet television in 1991. The Soviet version of “Lord of the Rings” believed lost has now been dusted off and digitized!

Lord of the Rings Quiz: How well do you know Middle-earth?

What sequences do you still have up your sleeve? Please leave us a comment. We are looking forward to your ideas. Also, please let us know your opinions on the different orders, they will certainly help others to decide which order is best. Have fun in Middle-earth!

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